Richard Muti

Richard Muti has more than 70 publishing credits—mostly Op-Ed pieces on history, law, politics and government—in The New York Times, The Record of Bergen County, New Jersey Lawyer, and other publications. He spent 19 years as a successful trial prosecutor and also taught writing, American government and politics, criminal justice, and history at three New Jersey universities. The Charmer is Muti's third book. He is a graduate of the U.S. Naval Academy, Harvard Business School, and Rutgers Law School, as well as a former Navy pilot and former mayor of Ramsey, New Jersey, his hometown.

Retired Deputy Attorney General Charles Buckley spent 25 years as one of New Jersey's top trial prosecutors, acting as a modern-day legal Paladin—"have briefcase, will travel"—and crisscrossing New Jersey to try the most difficult cases. Buckley put away the boss of the Philadelphia/Atlantic City crime family, as well as the capo in charge of the Hudson County waterfront. In New Jersey's first televised trial, his prosecution resulted in the conviction of a judge who accepted bribes to fix sentences. Other public officials felt Buckley's brand of justice: an official taking bribes to facilitate bridge and road construction; a mayor and planning board members taking bribes from developers; and a Hudson County police chief, Passaic County detective, and two City of Paterson cops—all convicted for misconduct involving organized crime. Buckley was the prosecutor who finally convicted Reldan after two previous murder trials had ended in failure.

The Charmer: The True Story of Robert Reldan – Rapist, Murderer, and Millionaire – and the Women who Fell Victim to his Allure

June 26, 2012 Special to Crime Magazine

An excerpt from The Charmer: The True Story of Robert Reldan – Rapist, Murderer, and Millionaire – and the Women who Fell Victim to his Allure

(Title Town Publishing, 2012, available in soft cover at major book stores and in Kindle at Amazon.com.)

by Richard Muti and Charles Buckley

Preface

Bob sports that collegiate look.

It is not a monster's face that looks up at the reader, there on page 31 of the Fort Lee, New Jersey, high school yearbook, class of 1958; rather, the young man appears as carefree as any 17-year-old should be. Yet, at the time this photo was taken, Robert Reldan already had a troubling juvenile record, including the assault and robbery of a woman in New York City, and he had done time in a reformatory. His classmates surely knew his history, yet whoever wrote Reldan’s yearbook entry was kind.

"Bob sports that collegiate look," the blurb below his picture reads, a reference to what a later generation would call “preppy.” He is an amateur pilot, it says, and intends a stint in the Air Force. The only glimpse into future reality is a remark about Reldan's "acid sense of humor." Although young Robert had athletic ability, especially in basketball, school activities are sparse. Understandable, when the youth's extracurricular interests lay elsewhere.

It is a handsome face with an engaging smile—a smile that promises a charming personality and inspires trust. A smile that would, over the next 20 years, cause unsuspecting women to drop their guard and place themselves under the power of one of New Jersey's most ruthless criminals.